Wednesday, November 14, 2012

A Light in the Window

GIVEAWAY

LESSMAN, JULIEA LIGHT IN THE WINDOW

One Woman. Two Men.
One stirs her pulse and the other her faith.
But who
will win her heart?

Marceline Murphy is a gentle beauty with a
well-founded aversion to rogues. But when two of Boston's most notorious pursue
her, she encounters a tug-of-war of the heart she isn’t expecting. Sam O’Rourke
is the childhood hero she’s pined for, the brother of her best friend and a
member of the large, boisterous family to which she longs to be a part. So when
his best friend Patrick O’Connor joins in pursuit of her affections, the choice
seems all too clear. Sam is from a family of faith and Patrick is not, two
rogues whose wild ways clash head-on with Marcy’s—both in her faith and in her
heart.

While overseeing the Christmas play fundraiser for the St. Mary’s
parish soup kitchen—A Light in the Window—Marcy not only wrestles with her
attraction to both men, but with her concern for their spiritual welfare. The
play is based on the Irish custom of placing a candle in the window on Christmas
Eve to welcome the Holy Family, and for Marcy, its message becomes deeply
personal. Her grandmother Mima cautions her to guard her heart for the type of
man who will respond to the "light in the window," meaning the message of Christ
in her heart. But when disaster strikes during the play, Marcy is destined to
discover the truth of the play’s message first-hand when it becomes clear that
although two men have professed their undying love, only one has truly responded
to “the light in the window.”

My Review:

Fans of Julie Lessman's work will find lots to rejoice about in this angst-riddled but inspirational Christmas tale. Rabid fans will also notice some wonderful personal touches in this story as well. :-) They made the read so much fun!

Lessman's gift of storytelling culminates in this last book about the O'Connor clan. Ironically, it is the prequel and the story that started it all. I appreciated the opportunity to discover Marcy and Patrick's romantic beginnings. Their solid, sometimes volatile and always passionate romance was the glue that bound the Daughters of Boston and Winds of Change series together for me. But fear not -- you will love this book even if you haven't read any of the others. But, if you have, you'll love A Light in the Window that much more.

Lessman uses the Irish Christmas custom of keeping a lighted candle in the window to welcome the Christ child as the basis for the inspirational thread in the story. Love the imagery of that and how she uses her characters to illustrate that we can all be a light unto the world by reflecting Christ's love and forgiveness. A moving Christmas message that will make my celebrations deeper and more meaningful this season.

Giveaway Opportunity:

NOTE: THIS BOOK COMES IN E-BOOK FORMAT ONLY. I DON'T HAVE A KINDLE BUT IT WAS SIMPLE ENOUGH TO DOWNLOAD ONTO MY LAPTOP. If you would like an opportunity to win a copy of A Light in the Window, please leave a comment below or email me at kavluvstoreadATyahooDOTca. If you post a comment and add your email, please use AT and DOT instead of @ and . in the address to protect yourself from spammers. If you enter the draw via email please remember to put the title in the subject line so that it's easy for me to spot your entry. Draw will be held and winner announced on Sunday November 18 2012. Offer open to international readers. Good luck!

I just finished the last book in the Winds of Change series, would love to read this to complete the O'Conner saga. I'm sorry it's only an e-book so I can't have it on my shelf with all of the others=) I do have a Kindle, so at least I can enjoy it even if I can't pass it around.

KAV!!! OH MY GOODNESS ... just found your review through a Google Alert and am SOOO BLESSED by your kind words!! Thank you SO very much for reading it in the first place, then writing such a WONDERFUL review AND offering a giveaway!! You are a true blessing, my friend!!

I am entering you in both my Kindle Fire contest with 6 pts. (5 pts. for buying the book, 1 pt. for posting a review on your blog) AND in my review contest (1 pt. for the review), so let me know if you post it anywhere else (FB, Twitter, Goodreads, etc.) per my contest specs here: JULIE’S CONTEST, okay?

Julie -- you never cease to amaze me. I think there must be clones of you that bounce around cyberspace keeping tabs on things! :-) Thanks for writing such wonderful books!

Glad to find another Lessman fan here, Tammi. Good luck!

Ooohhhh -- Patty, I'm jealous. I still have to get that last book -- Steven's story. They were late coming into Canada -- at least my bookstore up here and by the time I got there they'd sold out!!! So I hate to wait while they ordered more. I'm picking one up tomorrow and that will be my weekend read. Can't wait! Good luck with this draw!

I love Julie Lessman books. I just finished A Love Surrendered on Thursday and it DID NOT disappoint! I really enjoy how she includes Charity, Faith, Sean and Katie in the following books. Would LOVE to win A Light in the Window. Reading about Patrick and Marcy will be such a good book!